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Topic: Your ideas for promoting HLP! (Read 872 times)

Your ideas for promoting HLP!

OK. There's this awesome game - it has a fascinating plot, it looks like it's been released only a few years ago, it still has people that make addontional content that's as good as some professional titles - there's just one problem. It was released about 19 years ago, and even back then it didn't sold well, so the number of people playing it is rather... low. So I'm asking everybody here to post your ideas how we can get people to play FS and the other cool things that are being developed on HLP.

1. Ask Interplay to include a link to HLP or Knossos/the FSO-Installer in every copy of FS2 they sale. Let them replace the the retail pics on Steam with MVP ones. It's a win-win; they sale more, more players on HLP.

2. There's a YouTube channel of HLP but anything thats ever been done there is uploading a copy of the age old FSO Trailer and liking MJNs YT channel with the sadly rarely viewed HQ Cutscenes he made (only a few hundred views). There are several HLPers on YT that posted playthroughs or similar (like the BP intro), but it doesn't become clear where to get that stuff. Also, some of the content here is barely covered, for example if I enter "FreeSpace 2 Exile" on Google, there isn't a single video for this, despite being one of the best things HLP has to offer. It would be good to have some cross-promotion - ask people in a news article or constantly on the main page to follow it, to send in videos (project leaders showing their work/playthroughs/whatever); whoever is in charge of that account should like channels of people around on here HLP etc. Give the project leaders access to the account so that they can upload teasers/trailers/whatever FS related there.

3. Put said FSO Trailer on the main page. If it's used more promotion-wise anyway, it is more interesting than a few oversized news pics that were updated 2 years ago. If it's considered outdated record a new one?

4. Does anybody have connections that could be used to push the TCs to potential players? I'm sure there're quite some people who'd play sci-fi flight sims for free (especially since most larger companies are out of that business), and there's quite a lot HLP has to offer (anime, BSG, SW, B5...).

Re: Your ideas for promoting HLP!

There are a number of new arcade flight sims such as Ace Combat 7 and Project Wingman hitting the streets next year. You can always remind folks that the grand daddy of space sims is still alive and kicking.

• Change the name from HLP to something that links it to Freespace. ‘Freespace HLP’ being the obvious example. If you type ‘Freespace’ into Google, ‘HLP’ does not appear until the second page, which few will look at unless they are already searching for HLP specifically.

• Typing HLP into Google does not bring up Hard Light Productions within the first five pages of results.

• Reach out to influencers and ask them to review the retail games and the standout mods. Leverage the renewed interest in space sims – Elite Dangerous, No Man‘s Sky, Star Citizen etc. to raise awareness of the forgotten granddaddy of space sims.

Re: Your ideas for promoting HLP!

This is excellent. In order for the HLP community to thrive, we need regular members helping out in exactly this sort of way.

One thing I should point out is that even if HLP doesn't necessarily rank highly in SEO, Hard Light Productions certainly does.

Iain Baker, I appreciate your list, since social media engagement is something that HLP could certainly do better on. I took a look at your website and I'm intrigued. Have you managed any Twitter accounts or YouTube channels?

Re: Your ideas for promoting HLP!

I don't know if I'll be able to swing it every quarter (or even how long I'll be doing it because of how up in the air parts of grad school are) but I'll be pushing to get something FSO related onto https://www.twitch.tv/scholarsplay, not that we have the biggest platform but it's a different platform to say the least.

Also I'll be trying to get something resembling an upload schedule on my channel going forward and once I'm done with FSPort I'll be doing Silent Threat Reborn so there will be some good HLP stuff there.

Re: Your ideas for promoting HLP!

I have zero experience with SEO or publicity in general, so take my suggestions with a grain of salt.The SCP website is pretty high in search engine rankings for "Freespace 2", so perhaps linking to HLP more prominently there would help.I'm not sure how much boosting "HLP" or "Hard-Light Productions" in SE rankings would help, since how would you know what this website is called without having been here already? I'd try to boost its association with Freespace 2.Creating/updating ModDB accounts might help. Some of the best known FS mods are pretty popular on there, at least according to ModDB's embed buttons. Offering files for download there might not be a good idea because Knossos is much better, but just keeping things updated (like indicating if a project has actually released and pointing people towards Knossos/HLP to download it) might help.

[9:50 PM] Sottises: wait did you do vassago's verge?[9:50 PM] Sottises: .. dirge?[9:50 PM] Axem: yes[9:50 PM] Sottises: ohh[9:50 PM] Sottises: well I have that and JAD too[9:50 PM] Axem: [9:50 PM] Sottises: what a contrast of themes lmao[9:50 PM] Axem: isnt it[9:51 PM] Axem: super grimdark thriller about unknowable alien intelligence and over the top colorful action about friendship[9:51 PM] PIe: jad is grimdark???[9:51 PM] Axem: :skull:[6:23 PM] PIe: why do I have the feeling that I shouldn't be able to give orders to 22nd armored hq[6:24 PM] Axem: 22nd armored hq, i order you to get me a cup of coffee[6:24 PM] PIe: and donuts[6:24 PM] PIe: BECAUSE THIS IS THE GTVA POLICE[6:25 PM] Axem: :O[6:25 PM] Axem: am i under arrest[6:26 PM] [`_`]/: no, just please step out of the myrmidon[6:26 PM] [`_`]/: you have so much to fred for

I should be managing the social media side of my ex's businesses - https://www.mamas.london/ - once she works out what she wants me to do.

I am toying with creating a Nomad's Reviews YouTube channel at some point, once I have learned how to make and edit videos that is.

If you are wondering if I could help manage HLP's social media stuff, then yes, I probably could. I would be willing to do it 'pro bono' since HLP have provided such amazing mods it would be nice to be able to give something back to the community. Plus it would look good on my portfolio

Re: Your ideas for promoting HLP!

1. Ask Interplay to include a link to HLP or Knossos/the FSO-Installer in every copy of FS2 they sale. Let them replace the the retail pics on Steam with MVP ones. It's a win-win; they sale more, more players on HLP.

... better not to wake sleeping dogs. Interplay is still an US-company and US-copyright requires a rights holder to challange any intrusion on their property or forfeit the rights to it.

And replacing the pics on Steam or GoG with modded pictures might constitute a case of false advertising, as they would not promote the software you buy but what you get when install the mods on top of it. That mods are free would probably be insubstantial.

2. There's a YouTube channel of HLP but anything thats ever been done there is uploading a copy of the age old FSO Trailer and liking MJNs YT channel with the sadly rarely viewed HQ Cutscenes he made (only a few hundred views). There are several HLPers on YT that posted playthroughs or similar (like the BP intro), but it doesn't become clear where to get that stuff. Also, some of the content here is barely covered, for example if I enter "FreeSpace 2 Exile" on Google, there isn't a single video for this, despite being one of the best things HLP has to offer. It would be good to have some cross-promotion - ask people in a news article or constantly on the main page to follow it, to send in videos (project leaders showing their work/playthroughs/whatever); whoever is in charge of that account should like channels of people around on here HLP etc. Give the project leaders access to the account so that they can upload teasers/trailers/whatever FS related there.

As for video content, I don't know if I speak for everyone but the problem isn't making videos... it's editing. Having good gameplay often requires multiple session (unless you want to highlight just how bad a pilot you are), and then needs "a little" editing to trim out the loading screens etc. Add the time required to do those edits on top of that and you have an entire evening booked...

"When you work with water, you have to know and respect it. When you labour to subdue it, you have to understand that one day it may rise up and turn all your labours into nothing. For what is water, which seeks to make all things level, which has no taste or colour of its own, but a liquid form of Nothing?" - Graham Swift, Waterland

"As you sought to steal a kingdom for yourself, so must you do again, a thousand times over. For a theft, a true theft, must be practiced to be earned." - The terms of Nysa's curse, Pathfinder: Kingmaker